This Apple Story Will Be One of the Most Read

To say Apple's been dominating the new cycle over the last few years would be putting it lightly. And why not? People love reading about Cupertino and their trusty bag of gadgets. Be it about the iPhone, iPod, or iPad, zealots and detractors alike love agreeing with or railing against the screeds of a tech blogger. And those writers are well aware of the popularity. In fact, according to former Apple CEO Gil Amelio's book On the Firing Line: My 500 Days at Apple, a New York Times staffer admitted they sell 3% more papers if they run a lead story on Apple.

But Pew Research crunched some numbers and confirmed in a year-long study that Apple was the main topic in 15.1% of tech articles. Google followed up with 11.4%, Twitter came in at 7.1%, and Facebook and Microsoft trailed with 4.8% and 3%, respectively. Citibank, AT&T, Comcast, and Research in Motion brought up the rear but were unable to break one percent.

Motley Fool analyst Rex Moore said one of the main reasons Apple constantly makes its way into stories is its constant innovation. While it frustrates consumers to see their new device replaced with a newer version by the time they arrive at home, Steve Jobs' incessant press conferences and product unveilings make for exciting stories. Plus, as mentioned before, the high-profile brand generates some of the most fervent debate and, in turn, a massive amount of clicks.

Unsurprisingly, Google is close behind and could potentially run neck and neck with Apple stories in the near future. As the Android OS becomes more ubiquitous, so will the coverage, which breeds words of mouth, which fosters bigger sales, which leads to more coverage, and so on. And as long as Google, Verizon, Samsung, Motorola, and HTC offer up viable -- and arguably, superior -- alternatives to the iPhone, the media attention will grow.

Oh, and I suppose Google has other stuff going on besides smartphones, too.

Microsoft could see a bump with the release of Windows Phone 7, but that's dependent on how well it catches on with the public. Twitter and Facebook should hold steady in the coming months, lest a surprise IPO comes out of nowhere. And of the last four, a post-recession Citibank will likely take a dip, Comcast will be bolstered by the NBC takeover, and a potential Verizon iPhone could bring about more dismal coverage for both AT&T and RIM.

As for the year ahead, I'll play it safe and say Yahoo, MySpace, and Nokia won't likely crack the top ten. But for now, let me check out the number one Most Read article on Minyanville.